By Nourhan Dakroury
Approximately 24% of the construction of Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) has been completed, the Ethiopian Electric Power Corporation (EEPCo) announced on Tuesday.
Mihret Debebe, CEO of EEPCo, said that this amount includes the design work of a 500,000 kilovolt power transition line extending from the dam to different parts of the country, reported Ethiopian media outlet Walta Info.
Abadula Gemeda , speaker of the Ethiopian House of Representatives, told the Ethiopian News Agency (ENA) that Ethiopia is keen on ensuring mutual benefits for the Nile Basin countries, including Egypt.
Gemeda said that some of the information circulating in Egypt about the dam is “inaccurate and distorted,” and that Ethiopia has been gaining international support.
He added that Sudan has started showing its support for Ethiopia and accepting that the principles of mutual benefit among Nile riparian countries.
Gemeda said any Ethiopian effort to make use of the Nile water originates from its interest in ensuring equal share among all Basin countries.
Ethiopia began diverting the Blue Nile on 28 May in its construction of the Renaissance Dam, a $4.2bn hydro-electric dam that has sparked controversy in Egypt.
Multiple Egyptian analysts expressed their concerns about the construction of the dam, saying that it would affect Egypt’s share of the Nile water, which has been 55 million cubic metres of water annually as per agreements signed in 1929 and 1959.
